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How to Plan an Easter Egg Hunt

Seven easy steps for planning and plotting a successful holiday hunt.

Thinking it’s time you stepped up to host the annual Easter extravaganza? Follow these easy steps for pulling it off like a pro.

Set the date. Not all hunts happen on the same day. A good timeframe would be Easter weekend—or the week before. If you’re planning on hosting outdoors, have a back-up rainy day plan.

Pick the location. Whether the hunt is taking place on your front yard or the grounds of the community center, make sure the location works for your group. Pick an area that's large enough for your hunters, but not too large that it’s impossible to find the eggs. You’ll also want a spot where you can clearly define the boundaries, has plenty of grass, and is set far enough away from a road or pond. If you’re hosting inside, try and make sure the adventures take place on one floor so there are no stairs in the mix.

Stock up on eggs. Quite possibly the most important part. While some hosts prefer real eggs, it’s often best to use plastic eggs if there are a lot of little kids invited to your hunt. And the more eggs the merrier. If you’re not sure about how many to have on-hand, we’d suggest about 10 eggs per child, depending on the age group.

Have baskets, buckets, pails. It would be great if everyone arrived with baskets, but play it safe and assume that no one will show up with his or her own egg-loading gear. Plan to have at least one for every guest invited to the hunt.

Hide the eggs. Before you start hiding anything, count the eggs. (Trust us, you’ll thank us later.) Choose hiding spots that make sense for the ages of the kids invited. You’ll want some eggs in more obvious locations (on the lawn), and others hidden in more challenging spots like tucked inside a mailbox or hidden behind the stump of a tree.

Ready to hunt. If you're hosting kids of all different ages, think about letting kids go out in heats. To be fair, let the the youngest kids have first dibs on eggs.

Count the eggs. When you're certain that all the eggs have been found, it's time to count. Sometimes even the egg hiders forget about those clever hiding spots. If you choose to reward the all-star gatherers, now's the time to give out festive Easter prizes.